A FAMILY have been offered temporary accommodation by the council after fire ripped through their home on the Stanney Grange estate on Monday night.

The roof of the house in Arundel Court ­ the end property of a block of three ­ was destroyed and the interior badly damaged by flames, smoke and water.

The family, who have not been named but are believed to be a husband and wife and their two older children, were not inside the house by the time firefighters from the Ellesmere Port station arrived to tackle the blaze at 8.10pm.

One firefighter was slightly injured as the roof of the house collapsed at the height of the fire but decided to remain on duty.

According to Sub-Officer Phil Minchew, who was in charge of the incident, two engines were originally sent but the deployment was later increased to four, with about 16-20 firefighters involved.

He said: 'When we arrived the first floor was well alight with flames coming through the roof.

'Although the house was occupied by a family there was no-one inside when we got there. One of our first priorities was to check there was nobody trapped inside.'

He added: 'We then successfully fought to stop the fire spreading to the adjacent properties.